Free (Kindle DRM-free) Blood Hunt by Lee Killough [Vampire Police Procedural] + KDP

[ATDrake]

A nice treat in today's KDP Select exclusive-or-else-but-you-can-promo-freebie-for-5-days-out-of-90 slushpile.

For those of you who've been following sf/fantasy writer Lee Killough's freebied backlist, one of the early books which apparently made her name in the field is now being offered free.

And there's also a very nice historical true-crime thriller as well, and some other previously-printed backlist books to go with the established author self-pubs.

Blood Hunt by Lee Killough, is the 1st in her Garreth Mikaelian series of police procedurals starring a vampire cop, originally published by Tor in 1987, and a sort of precursor to the current paranormal investigative style of urban fantasies we have today. Apparently back then, it was pretty unusual to blend the supernatural with the procedural and only a handful of authors were doing it.

Killough's other novels have been yanked from Smashwords to be KDP Selected, but they are still a reasonable $2.99 and DRM-free, although I'm personally waiting to see if she puts any back on SW in time for Read an E-Book Week.

Anyway, free without DRM for who knows how long @ Amazon main UK DE ES FR IT

Description
When San Francisco Homicide Inspector Garreth Mikaelian begins hunting a mysterious red-haired woman who appears involved in the murders of two out-of-town businessmen, he faces a killer unlike any he has investigated before. For unknown to him, Lane Barber is a vampire. When Garreth comes too close, she attacks him and turns him into a vampire, too. Now, even as he struggles to cope with this devastating change in his life without betraying to others what he has become, he is back on Lane’s trail...this time with a vengeance. But can he find her, and find a way to bring her to justice, before she decides to attack again, and this time finish him off?

Nicola Thorne offers a 2000-HarperCollins published historical crime novel, apparently based on a true-life 1850s Dorset murder: My Name is Martha Brown

Previously-featured James D. Best, who had a business title published by Wiley and has since turned his hand to fiction writing, offers a Western set historical drama/thriller of a shopkeeper-turned-gunslinger which also happens to have an Audible edition: The Shopkeeper (A Steve Dancy Tale)

Previously-featured small-press-published Gordon Ryan offers the 2nd in his historical Irish immigrant saga, should you have missed the omnibus edition freebied earlier: Conflict: The Callahans Book Two

Paul Argentini, who had a couple of print-published "how to write a play" and "how to run a community theatre" small press books in the late 90s, turns his hand to writing historical novels of the Da Vinci Code-type uncovering hidden secrets "mystery" and offers: The Fourth Nail

Canadian-resident Claire Delacroix offers a 2000-Dell-paperbacked historical romance, 2nd in her Bride Quest series: The Countess She offers a selection of her backlist books (also published under the pseudonyms Claire Crosse and Deborah Cooke) for $2.99 a pop over at Smashwords (and hence to any other Smashwords-carrying outlets), if you're interested.

Previously featured Big-6-paperbacked Cheyenne McCray, writing under her erotic pen name Jaymie Holland, offers an erotic romantic suspense novella involving a paranormal government agency: The Touch

Alisha Yvonne who has had several novels published by small-press Urban Books, some of which she says have been listed as bestsellers by Essence magazine, offers what looks like a chick-lit possibly-romantic thriller: The CleanUp Woman

Julia Buckley had a 2006 novel printed by Llewellyn Publishing's Midnight Ink imprint, who've offered us mystery freebies in the past. She now offers the start of a new series: Madeline Mann (The Madeline Mann Mysteries)

Previously-featured Robert W. Walker returns with another in his Big-6-paperbacked Jessica Coran Forensic Pathologist thriller series. I forget whether this has been freebied before, since I've set up a secondary auxiliary account to keep the KDP offerings separate from the publisher-promo freebies, so: Primal Instinct

Barbara M. Hodges, who has a number of YA novels small-press published by Tigress, an imprint with at least a handful of authors in its stable, teams up with Randolph Tower to write a cop-vs-serial killer thriller, offered from the same BWLPP imprint who are re-pubbing Lee Killough's book above: Ice

Previously featured Canadian horror writer James Roy Daley offers his 2007 1st novel: The Dead Parade, which includes a lot of previews for other stuff. You'd think they'd vary the selection a little and promote some more varied titles.

John McDonnell, who's had one story officially printed in a small-press magazine (ISFDB entry), offers a collection of short horror tales: Big Chills

Previously-featured fellow MR member author Libby Fischer Hellman re-offers her mystery/thriller short story collection, should you have missed it earlier: Nice Girl Does Noir: A Collection of Short Stories (Vol. 2)

For the nature-lovers in the audience, here's a brief field guide done by some people who originally intended it for a high school environmental science class and they've put in fairly nice illustrations and descriptions from the sample I quickly skimmed, so: The Essential Species of Pennsylvania

Happy reading, if there's anything in there you think you might like.

[phloxy]

I decided to try a few of these. Thanks for the list!

[Dr. Drib]

Picked up a few.

Thank you.



Don

[Stormchild]

Only one of interest today but I wanted to say thanks for doing this everyday. My TBR list is growing rather rapidly.

[Blue Tyson]

I'm hoping Killough does a short story collection.

[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by Blue Tyson

I'm hoping Killough does a short story collection.

You can always try making inquiries via her re-publisher. Here's her old Smashwords page, which in turn links to her re-publisher's page, which likely has a contact link somewhere in it.

Anyway, a few late but worthwhile additions I either missed earlier and/or took a while to make it to the usual new-free-books-listings outlets which helpfully keep me from having to do a straight raw data trawl on Amazon's site like I used to for the publisher promos back before the $0.00 selection exploded and made that profoundly unfeasible.

It turns out that Nicola Thorne is offering a 2nd free book, originally published by Severn House in 1997. This is a "tale of psychic suspense" with praise from Publisher's Weekly, and which the original Booklist review calls a "British cozy turned chilly": Repossession

Edgar Award-nominee Libby Sternberg offers her Five Star-published mystery which is apparently a gender-flipped riff on Jane Eyre (with what looks like maybe a nod or two to Sunset Boulevard) : SLOANE HALL (A Tale of Old Hollywood)

Samhain-published Canadian author Jade Buchanan offers an m/m fantasy and/or paranormal erotic romance which she says was previously published (and she does have a number of listings from small specialty romance presses): The Storykeeper

[phloxy]

A novel set in the 1920s and inspired by Jane Eyre? My favorite time period and my favorite classic. I am so on this. Thanks ATDrake!

[Dr. Drib]

Got two out of three. Guess which one I didn't get?

Thanks for the new listing.



Don

[Britomart]

Windswept by Cynthia Thomason, first published by Kensington in 1999, is a historical romance set in Key West and free at Amazon US DE right now.

Another free 1999 Kensington historical romance is Touched by Fire by Gwyneth Atlee (US DE). It's a mail-order bride story set in the old West.

[phloxy]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

Got two out of three. Guess which one I didn't get?

You were either untempted by the Jane Eyre variation, or you're in the no romo camp...

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by Britomart

Windswept by Cynthia Thomason, first published by Kensington in 1999, is a historical romance set in Key West and free at Amazon US DE right now.

Another free 1999 Kensington historical romance is Touched by Fire by Gwyneth Atlee (US DE). It's a mail-order bride story set in the old West.

I grabbed these gems!

Master Of Paradise by Virginia Henley is free today! Woot! She was one of my favorite authors growing up. Looks like it's one she never published before. I can't wait to read it.

[ATDrake]

Okay, the thread title feature is still free, and a random check of 5 of the other titles shows that they are still free, and people have been contributing their own backlist finds from authors they recognize (which I encourage, as I probably skip past a bunch of uninteresting-looking/hard to verify stuff [sf/fantasy, horror and romance are relatively easy as the Internet Speculative Fiction Database helps a lot and if a romance author doesn't have a paperback or e-book credential from a known press, they're probably lying about being a bestselling award-winner] and will probably miss out on someone's favourite obscure-to-me print-published author).

So I'm sticking the updates here (but if you've a Prime membership, remember to verify the freebieness of the older stuff), which includes a very nice set of essays by prominent sf/fantasy authors, plus some good backlist in the mystery & romance departments, and a bunch of nice things for the horror fans. And some possible Christian fiction and a children's book, for those who want a bit more variety in their freebie-getting.

Edited by Mark Morris, this book of essays apparently includes contributions by such sf/fantasy luminaries as Brian Stableford, Lucius Shepard, Joe R. Lansdale, etc. and was meant to go with the British Fantasy Convention in 2010: Cinema Futura

Mike Lewis (ISFDB entry) offers a collection of his short sf/fantasy stories, some of them previously published: The Smell of Magic and Other Stories

Previously-featured Sylvia Haute offers a short sf story released by the Goldport Press imprint which apparently exists to e-print Baen author Sarah A. Hoyt and friends' stuff: The Lady of Shalott

Previously-featured probably-Canadian Chester Burton Brown returns with a science fiction tale which does not feature his "legless aboriginal detective whose handicaps are his greatest asset": Welcome to Mars!

Jory Sherman's collection has an introduction by Loren D. Estleman: Shadows of Yesteryear: Western Short Stories

Donna Westover Gallup has a couple of novels small-press published by Cladach, who has a few other authors in their stable and looks like it might be a faith-based imprint from their other titles. She offers the 2nd in her Colorado-set western family saga series Mysterious Ways, published in 2008: Rock of Refuge: A Frontier Novel

Chris F. Holm will apparently have a book out by sf small press Angry Robot, and he offers a short story collection including a tale which he says was printed in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine: 8 Pounds: Eight Tales of Crime, Horror, & Suspense

Previously-featured Adams Media/Tyrus-published Edgar nominee Craig McDonald offers his debut novel, 1st in the Hector Lassiter series about a crime novelist who has zany fun romps with the public figures of the day. This one is a caper mystery set in Mexico and has Prescott Bush (some kind of relation of the former US president), Orson Welles, Marlene Dietrich, and Pancho Villa: Head Games

Toni Dwiggins had a 1995 novel paperbacked by Tor. This is not it, but Forensic Geology sounds kind of awesome: Volcano Watch (The Forensic Geology Series)

Previously-featured Canadian mystery writer Mobashar Qureshi offers the short story: The Red Sweater

Canadian-born Barbara Ann Derksen offers a faith-based mystery which was 2009-paperbacked by "Fundcraft", for who all I know might be one of those iUniverse/AuthorHouse-type vanity presses (they have a rather incoherent selection of titles in the search) but if you're interested: Vanished (Wilton/Strait Mystery series)

Faith Mortimer had a 2009 novel published by Olympia Publishers, who appear to be a newbie small paperback press. She offers a collection of assorted mystery stories, some suspense, some romantic : The Broken Mirror

Judith K. Ivie offers a New England-set cozy mystery that was 2009-paperbacked by small press Mainly Murder, which has a few other authors in its stable: A Skeleton in the Closet (Kate Lawrence Mysteries)

Sean Black offers a 2009-Bantam-published thriller, 1st in the Ryan Lock series about an ex-military bodyguard: Lockdown

Linda Prather had a 2006 small-press published novel which she helpfully indicates in the product info is now rights-reverted and re-published by herself. I like it when authors give the provenances of their books, so here's what one reviewer says is a "supernatural mystery thriller" (they also advise to start with the prequel book written later): The Gifts, A Jacody Ives Mystery (Jacody Ives Mysteries)

Previously-featured Edgar and Bram Stoker Award-nominee Billie Sue Mosiman returns with the self-explanatory: LEGIONS OF THE DARK (VAMPIRE NATIONS CHRONICLES) and THE LONELY WALK-A Zombie's Notebook

Craig Saunders (ISFDB entry) offers a short story collection of horror tales: Dead in the Trunk

Bryan Hall (ISFDB entry)
offers a collection of 14 spooky stories : Whispers From The Dark

Carol Hightshoe (ISFDB entry) edits this anthology: Zombiefied! An Anthology of All Things Zombie

Dave Jeffery (ISFDB entry) offers what looks like a tie-in story to his novel: Splatoon (Necropolis Rising)

[Oops, mentioned above. Thanks to Britomart for sharing.

Cynthia Thomason offers a 1999-Zebra-paperbacked Carribean-set historical romance: Windswept

Colleen Thompson offers a 1999-Zebra-published historical-looking western romance: Touched by Fire]

Tina Gerow offers a 2007-Triskelion-paperbacked paranormal romantic suspense with a psychic serial killer which the blurb says was Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Small Press Contemporary Paranormal: Into a Dangerous Mind

Previously-featured Kensington-published Lori Brighton offers a YA paranormal romance: The Mind Readers If you missed any earlier, she still offers three assorted romance novellas: free to all via Smashwords (if you don't see any results, click the "Deactive Adult Filter").

Ellora's Cave-published Eliza Knight offers "sizzling, hot, post-apocalyptic romance novella": Apocalypse of the Heart

Kristen James, who appears to have a number of novels small-press-published by different small presses, offers the following novella: The Fairy and her Giant: A Fantasy Romance

Anne Evans offers a 2000-Scholastic-published children's book (originally titled "Sealed Mysteries") that's aimed at younger readers (how young, I can't really tell from the blurb, but it's below YA level): Fishing for Clues (Little Tyke Murder Mysteries)

Previously-featured Canadian writer Alex Carrick who says he's had a few short stories nominated for minor writing awards offers another collection of such, including "A Mathematical Proof Economists are Sexy", if you're interested: Ten Tales of Frothy Play (Ten Tales Series)

J.J. Martin says she has had one short story published in a particular magazine, and given the names of both in her author blurb so anyone can google and verify, which I'm not bothering to. Since she's being upfront and hasn't been deliberately vague about being "a bestselling award-winner featured in many magazines" like a lot of newbie authors with only one catalogue listing do, I'm going to include her ghostly mysterious tragedy involving a politician's wife and hidden past secrets here: Porter House

Tori Scott, who has Kindle-only offerings in her listings, claims to be a "best-selling and award-winning author" and finalist in many contests including the RWA's Golden Heart, which apparently really is their newbie-with-promising-manuscript award and "lists several publications among her accomplishments". Here's her contemporary western romance which is self-pubbed like all her other work, if you're interested: Blame It On Texas

Here's a travelogue whose blurb claims praise from a number of writers who write for official travel guides, and whose author claims to have written travel articles for named UK newspapers on his website: For Fukui's Sake: Two years in rural Japan

I am including this on the basis that the blurb makes it look like it could be cracktastically entertaining. "Ahhhhh! Vamps in Kilts! Run for the hills!": Delivered to Eternity, An Alesta the Vampire Book The reviews are very mixed and indicate editing problems, but the author has looked to be reasonably gracious about thanking people for their constructive criticism and promising to fix the errors.

Happy reading, if indeed you spot something you think you might like.

[Dr. Drib]

Ok - Picked up another 15 or more.

The pile keeps growing.....

Thanks!


Don

[Blue Tyson]

Another Robert W. Walker, where Cuba's first female lieutenant detective has to solve a murder case where the usual blokes want her to fail.

Cuba Blue - Robert W. Walker

[Britomart]

Also free at Kindle US DE is Barbara Samuel's Lucien's Fall. This is a Regency-set historical romance first published by Harper Collins in 1995.